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Rollins Band Rolls Out Benefit Tour
Special guest on the outing is Keith Morris, the original singer in Black Flag and current leader of the Circle Jerks. It’s almost a Black Flag reunion, but not quite.
According to Rollins, “On this tour, we are a cover band. I should add that when I say cover, I mean you better take cover when we hit stage because we’re not f*****g around.” True Rollins style.
As with his nearly 90-date tour earlier this year, all the money made will go to the West Memphis Three Defense Fund. Rollins writes that the money will go to support DNA testing, which comes with a hefty price tag.
“Thanks to the generosity of the audiences [from the last tour] we were able to send the West Memphis Three Defense Fund $10,000,” Rollins wrote on his Web site.
“We had a great time playing those songs live and the audience was into it too so we have decided to take it worldwide. We will be doing several dates starting June 1. There’s a solid month in America for sure and the dates are being booked as I write this. From there we go to Europe and as it looks now, Australia will be included.”
For those not aware of Rollins’ campaign, the West Memphis Three are three men who were convicted of triple homicide while they were teen-agers in the mid’90s. Many feel the conviction was based on stereotypes against the type of music the men listened to.
Along with Rollins, Eddie Vedder, Tom Waits, the late Joe Strummer and Steve Earle are some of the other musicians who have taken up the cause, which seeks to overturn the Three’s sentences.